Old Cricket by Lisa Wheeler (0-689-84510-3) is a great picture book for reading aloud. Old Cricket, who is attempting to avoid work lies about the many aches and pains he has. Of course in the end it all comes back around, and he gets caught in his own lies. The illustrations by Ponder Goembel are large, vibrant and clever. The pictures combined with the rhythm and repetition in the story make this book worth sharing.
I plan to use this book when reading this fall with the kindergarteners and 4-year-olds at the school. It is a little wordy and involved for the toddlers I tend to get for my story times.

The Treekeepers by Susan McGee Britton (0-525-46944-3) is a fantasy novel for older elementary children. The story features a feisty girl named Bird in search of her father in a world torn apart by an evil ruler who destroyed the Tree That Talks. On her quest, Bird meets other orphan children, a lovely but sad woman and a gentle, heroic man who are all fighting the evil in the land and trying to restore the Tree . There is violence in the latter part of the book consistent with most fantasy novels where good fights evil.
I will be recommending this title to kids who enjoy quest stories, sword fighting, and strong female characters. It was a great read. Very gripping and intense toward the end.

Child Lit Blogs
Here are a few more children’s lit blogs to enjoy!

Bill’s Books is a monthly list of recommended YA books from ALAN (Assembly on Literature for Adolescents).

Mrs. Rabbitt’s Bookbag is the only other blog I know of that is dedicated to children’s books. If you know of any others, please let me know!

Via NewPages Weblog comes this
Rocky Mountain News article on why the book industry is still suffering despite hits like the latest Harry Potter.

School Library Journal has an article that will inspire those who work with children to intervene and make a difference in their lives.
Most important for this blog is the following passage: “Werner and Smith discovered that reading is “one of the most potent predictors of successful adaptation among high-risk children” and that effective reading skills by grade four foretold a successful transition to adulthood.” The article continues from there to give practical ideas on how to work with books and teens.

The Boston Globe Online has an article about celebrity children’s book authors. While I agree that most of them are pure schlock, I did like Jerry Seinfeld’s Halloween. It was one of the best received Halloween books I read last year to the Kindergarteners. They asked for it for weeks afterwards. It does take practice to read it with the right flair, but it’s a lot of fun!

40 Books About… is a series of subject bibliographies from the CCBC (Cooperative Children’s Book Center). These collections feature real gems that are definitely worth looking at and sharing with children.